Time-out

Pleasure in the job puts perfection in the work.
Aristotle (384BC - 322BC)

As readers of this blog you know that it is about how my life is changing since I became a dad. It is also about how my daughter is changing in the time that she has been around. Today's blog is a little different and hopefully you'll stick around till the end.
I have been an air traffic controller with the Federal Aviation Administration for the last fifteen years. During that time I have been through many ups and downs, both personally and professionally. Most of theses downs have been due to decisions I have made, choices that I have made, or circumstances that I could have controlled. Surprisingly, most of these ups have also been because of things that I have done. Usually, the FAA is just my employer: I have a career, I am compensated, and I, in turn, give up three night shifts, one day shift and one midnight shift a week. If my work days are holidays, birthdays, or anniversaries then that is just the way it is. I work when I am scheduled because being an air traffic controller is, or at least has been, a career and not just a job to me. I was once proud of being able to say that I had a career as an air traffic controller. I felt that going into work provided me with a sense of purpose and was useful to the flying public and the overall good of the country. The FAA is intent on taking this career and turning it into nothing more than a way to put food on the table. My pride in this line of work is being taken away piece by piece and once the pride is gone it will probably never return.
Over the course of the last year and a half the FAA and the union that represents air traffic controllers, NATCA, have been embroiled in a contentious negotiation over a new contract. I am not going to get into the whole history of management/union rights at this time nor am I going to try to convince you that unions are good and management is bad. All I am going to try to do is make you aware that the FAA is not acting or negotiating in good faith. When the FAA entered negotiations they had two agendas. The first was to ensure that work rules, pay and benefits that had been earned over years of hard work and negotiations would be stripped away one by one. The second goal was to obliterate the union. Once the FAA realized that they could not get the union to agree to their demands through threats and intimidation the FAA declared the negotiations to be at an impasse and sent their last best offer to Congress.
This issue is so pressing that there is even a movement within the House of Representatives to force the FAA to act in good faith. If you can take the time to visit www.fairfaa.com you can help change the FAA's actions towards these contract negotiations by becoming more informed of the issue, and then contacting your elected congressmen. By doing this, you can help to insure that the FAA keeps air traffic control a career and doesn't let it become just a job.
This is not a partisan issue. The bill in the House is sponsored by a Republican, and many Democrats and Republicans alike support it. I am not going to get into a long Bush-bashing sermon; there are many other blogs and news sources that you can read for that kind of information. I am simply trying to raise awareness of this specific issue because the outcome of this contract will have long lasting and far reaching implications for both my daughter and myself. The flying public will also be impacted through delays at the airports when hundreds or thousands of controllers who are eligible to retire decide the new work rules just aren’t acceptable. Once these seasoned, experienced controllers retire it will take at least two to three years for their replacements to be able to do their jobs. As of now the FAA has not hired anywhere near the amount of controllers necessary to counteract a large onset of retirements. It’s simple really: the fewer eyes that are watching the sky the fewer planes that can be in the sky.
Please visit www.fairfaa.com today and ask Congressman Bass or Congressman Bradley to support HR 5449.